Prosecutor’s Office Investigating Police-Involved Shooting In Linden

LINDEN — The Union County Prosecutor’s Office Shooting Response Team is in the early stages of an investigation involving an officer’s weapon being discharged during the course of an arrest in Linden on Tuesday, Prosecutor Theodore J. Romankow said.

Investigators believe that around 4 p.m. yesterday, Piscataway police officers tracked an individual who was allegedly involved in an armed robbery in Middlesex County earlier in the day. As the officers attempted to arrest the suspect, Christopher Desa, 31, of Plainfield, he allegedly entered a vehicle and assaulted the officers.

In response one officer discharged a weapon, and Desa continued onto Routes 1 &9 where he struck several other vehicles, Romankow said.

The suspect was struck by gunfire, was taken to University Hospital where he is currently being treated, according to the prosecutor’s office. The officers were also taken to local hospitals for an evaluation and later released.

The passengers in the vehicles that were struck by Desa received medical attention and were later released, said Romankow.

The prosecutor’s office handles all police involved shootings in the county as a matter of course. The investigation continues with authorities from Union, Middlesex, and Somerset counties and charges are expected to be filed in the coming days, officials said.